Re: Blackfish 2013 Torrent
Madelyn Grindel
In the geologic past, Alaska blackfish ranged over a broad area from eastern Russia to southcentral Alaska. A fossil specimen found in the Homer area shows that blackfish were once present on the Kenai Peninsula. In recent times, Blackfish occur naturally in eastern Russia and western, northern, and Interior Alaska.
Later, they were transported intentionally or unintentionally to waters in the Palmer and Wasilla area, where they flourished. They were found in the 1990s on the Kenai Peninsula. Efforts to eradicate Alaska Blackfish where they had been introduced included using rotenone, a compound that interferes with respiration, but the air-breathing Blackfish persisted.
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North of the village of Hughes, in frigid, sluggish water, dim blue light penetrates two feet of lake ice. The ice has a quarter-size hole, maintained by a stream of methane bubbles. Every few minutes, a brutish little fish swims up, turns to sip air, and peels back to the dank.
The Alaska blackfish is an evolutionary loner that fins through lakes and tundra ponds across much of the state. It exists nowhere else, except just across Bering Strait in Siberia. Not much larger than a banana, the fish is different from others in the state because, in addition to gathering oxygen through its gills, it can pull oxygen from free air.
Though many fish have the ability to breathe atmospheric air, most of them live in the tropics. The Alaska blackfish's ability to gulp the same air as you and me has allowed it to occupy stagnant northern pools that kill other fish. When ice seals off small lakes and the stocked rainbow trout goes belly up, the blackfish guts it out.
Just how tough is the blackfish? A rural legend is of a blackfish being chipped from a frozen mass of several blackfish and fed to a sled dog. The fish thaws and revives in the dog's stomach, where its wriggling causes the dog to vomit. There on the snow, a live fish writhes, resurrected. This story has persisted since Lucien Turner, writing about Alaska natural history in 1886, first documented it.
To see how much blackfish could take, the men subjected them to more tests. They conducted these experiments by dipping parts of the fish in Prestone antifreeze chilled to a subzero temperature. Two fish frozen from their tails to pectoral fins thawed and survived for five days before they died. The researchers noted the fish swam using only fins that had not been dipped and that blood circulation never resumed in the frozen parts.
But all five fish died within three days. The physiologists concluded that the blackfish, though quite impressive, does not recover from the freezing of its tissues and cannot survive becoming a fish-sicle.
Since the late 1970s, the University of Alaska Fairbanks' Geophysical Institute has provided this column free in cooperation with the UAF research community. Ned Rozell is a science writer for the Geophysical Institute. A version of this story was published in 2014.
I like cold weather. I always have. But the wicked change in temperatures this past weekend was truly jarring for me. Just a few days prior to the freezing conditions, which were enhanced by the bitter northwesterly wind, I was walking around in shorts and a light T-shirt. I was reluctant to say goodbye to our warm weather.
But my blood naturally runs cold. As someone of 100-percent Russian ancestry who attended college in overly frigid Buffalo and who has laced up skates eagerly to play ice hockey most of my life, even I was caught off guard by the biting winds as I felt the full wrath of the harsh, newfound icy conditions. Perhaps my blood is beginning to thin as I advance in my years. But I still enjoy the chill at times.
The drastic drop in temperatures also spurred my urge to ensure that I make every day count. As the days continue to get shorter for another month and the temperatures drop, I have an inherent need and want to get on the water as much as possible before my boat gets yanked up on dry land later in December.
Sunday morning dawned with temperatures hovering around 32 degrees, but that did not dissuade my two guests from showing up dockside with fishing rods in hand just before the sun was to rise at 6:33. Both were as eager as I was as I plotted a northeasterly course for the nearly 90-minute ride to Fishers Island, a sparsely populated, narrow, and craggy island a few miles south of the far eastern end of Connecticut. Cold be damned, we needed to fish.
With half a bushel of green crabs at the ready for bait, along with some highly-prized hermit crabs I had dredged up from my scallop adventures earlier that week, we finally reached our destination just off the single-strip airport at the western end of the island.
Anchoring up in about 50 feet of water on the outgoing tide, the bow of my boat pointed directly across Long Island Sound toward New London, Conn., and the clearly visible, giant blue General Dynamics Electric Boat hangar where nuclear submarines are constructed for the Navy. Looking out for subs would have to wait; it was time to fish.
After dropping my freshly cut crab down into the dark water, it was only about five seconds before a blackfish inhaled my bait. The fight was on and a minute or so later, a feisty and determined nine-pound blackfish lay upon the stern cockpit deck. It was a great start for me. My two previous trips for blackfish resulted in precisely zero keeper fish (anglers are allowed four fish per day over 16 inches). It felt good knowing that a nice dinner would await me later that evening. Hard to beat fresh blackfish, even when scallops are aplenty.
While many were short of the legal-size limit, we ended up throwing back many keepers that would have to be left to be caught another day. And while other boats near us repeatedly reanchored to find some prime bottom and fish, we never moved and were fortunate to be on a spot that allowed us one-stop nonstop action. It was perhaps the finest day of fishing for blackfish each of us had ever experienced.
By 11 a.m., it was time for us to call it a day. While the sun broke out, the tide had slacked, and by that time it took only four ounces of lead to hold bottom. The fish were still biting as eagerly as when we first dropped anchor, but it was a long ride home to Sag Harbor in the rare, calm, late fall sea. It was time to raise the anchor, depart, and store the vivid memories of what was a very special morning. We had experienced an aquatic excursion that each of us will never forget. We were truly very fortunate. And we all knew and appreciated every moment of it.
As for other species, the action along the ocean beaches perked up with some occasional shots of striped bass and bluefish. The activity has been rather widespread from Southampton to spots to the east of Amagansett.
An avid hunter, Bennett also reminded me that the season to pursue wild turkey commences on Saturday and expires on Dec. 1. For folks who have so far only purchased a Butterball turkey with a pop-up timer, a fresh turkey is a true treat.
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Blackfish, also called Tautog by Native Americans in the New York area, is one of the best fish for new and experienced fisherman alike. Challenging and rewarding, fishing for blackfish on a fishing boat in NYC guarantees an exciting trip.
The best times for blackfish are in the spring and fall when these fish are plentiful in areas like Rockaway Beach, New York Harbor, and the New Jersey Coast, although we have a variety of other fishing experiences available for year round.
Marilyn Jean creates NYC blackfish fishing experiences designed around you and your party. We have many trips available, including morning and night. We also allow scheduling private charters. Each trip departs from Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn to take you to the places we know that blackfish are biting.
You are welcome to bring all of your own gear if you like, but we make sure that to have all the gear you need right on our ships. This makes it simple to fish if you are new to the sport or are traveling from out of town. On a blackfish charter, we have everything you need to specifically hook blackfish, including:
For those that are enjoying their own private charter, we offer, an additional cost, a delicious catering package for your time out at sea, or you can bring your own food, including alcohol if you prefer.
A day of fishing with one of our daily fishing charters is one of the best ways to enjoy the water around NYC. You get an enjoyable day at sea, delicious fish to take home, and a chance to see the many sights of NYC from the water. We take walk ons, but we recommend you book using our online scheduling software, where you can book your blackfish boating experience aboard the Marilyn Jean IV, Marilyn Jean V, or another of our boats. You can also contact us for your own private blackfish charter. No matter how you choose to schedule with us, you can expect to receive.
We sail year around and catch Fluke, Flounder, Striped Bass, Weakfish, Bluefish, Sea Bass, Porgies, Blackfish, Ling, Tickets can be purchased in advance online or buy your fishing trip ticket on board the boat the day of your trip. We offer special fishing discounts for Senior citizens, children and groups.
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